Public

If I began telling a blonde joke in Budapest, where I just happened to visit two months ago, it could land me in some legal trouble. Irate blonde protestors (I can’t even type that without mildly chuckling) in Hungary claim they are "being discriminated against in every walk of life".

There are 5.5 million people who live in the Detroit metropolitan area. Last night at the Detroit Pistons-Indiana Pacers basketball game, one (likely non-sober) fan decided to toss his cup of beer at Pacers' headcase player Ron Artest. Now we will hear a lot of chatter in the media and talk radio about 'Detroit's Image' and 'Detroit's Black Eye'. ESPN talking heads will drone on and on about 'Detroit Fans'. Read more »

Hugh Grant announced that he may retire from acting, suggesting that "it's so long and boring and so difficult to get right."

Ron Artest of the Indiana Pacers asked Coach Carlisle for a month off to rest his aching body from his busy schedule (the NBA season just started), which included promoting his upcoming rap album. Read more »

Well, I guess one irritant we'll be spared over the next four years is the constant "Bush Stole the Election" mantra often supported by leftists. With Bush winning the popular vote as well as the electoral college, one wonders if Jeneane Garofalo will now change the title of her Air America show Majority Report, which alluded to Al Gore winning the majority popular vote in 2000.

Like some of my fellow co-bloggers, I also submitted a vote today and chose among the poor selection offered. I went for the Split Government (a.k.a. Gridlock) Strategy. Even the historically conservative-leaning Detroit News couldn't find it within itself to endorse Bush, or anyone for that matter. Read more »

A fun side effect of campaign finance "reform" is that the names of political donors become public record, along with the amount, the recipient, the donor's home address, occupation and employer.

This tool lets you search those records based on an address, returning information on donations from persons in the area. Yes, yes, the privacy implications are shocking, but this thing is fun!Read more »

While I still partake in the occasional movie-going experience, the fun activity of seeing a film on the big screen has become a bit less enjoyable the past few years. The reason, of course, being cell phones. While the occasional cell phone hog (usually of the teenage variety) won't completely ruin my experience, nothing really diverts one's attention away from the action on the screen than the usual sing-song sound of a cell phone, and the quiet but audible gossip-filled conversation that follows. Read more »

I'm pleased to announce that there was some common sense displayed by my home state's government today.

Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (Dem) signed a bill today that bans lawsuits against the food industry for 'making people fat'. The bill was introduced by Rep. David Palsrok (Repub), who said that "I think it sends an important message to people in Michigan when it comes to issues of personal health and obesity ... Folks have to take personal responsibility for their actions." Read more »

A California library spent $40,000 of city tax dollars for a ceramic mural featuring dozens of famous historical figures. The artist, Maria Alquilar, misspelled 11 of the names, including Einstein and Michelangelo. The city then spent another $6,000, plus expenses, to fly in the same artist to fix the spelling errors. Moral of the story: Do sloppy work, then get paid even more to fix it up. Read more »

Perusing through a recent copy of Rolling Stone, I came across a section devoted to various musicians giving their anti-Bush comments and opinions on the upcoming elections. Granted, some comments were well-founded (check out Moby), while others were simply out in left field (pun intended).

I held back a snicker when I read the commentary by Adam Horovitz, member of the Beastie Boys: Read more »

"Should be called not 'tax cut', but mugging of the poor, elderly and working classes and of America itself."

- David Graham, a voter, answering the obviously loaded and biased question in a Detroit News cybersurvey: "Do you feel the federal tax cuts were worth the reduction in job-training programs, college financial grants and services for the working poor, such as assistance in housing, child care and food?"

Jerry Schwarz of the Associated Press reports on all the "fat" insults directed to Michael Moore by those who sit opposite the political aisle from him. Moreover, Marilyn Wann, author of the book FAT!SO?, claims the Republicans are "behaving exactly like the third-grade bullies who tormented me as a child". Read more »

Doug Allen lives in suburban Detroit (Macomb County) and works as a market research analyst/consultant in the automotive industry. He obtained a BBA in marketing from Western Michigan University, and went on to Oakland University for an MBA with a concentration in International Business. Academia and general life experiences have shaped his outlook to favor limited government intrusion in people's daily lives, and the promotion of freedom and individual character. While he’s not a hard-core libertarian, he firmly fits into the "socially liberal / fiscal conservative" bucket. Read more »